We woke up on Day 6 to blazing sun and not a cloud in the sky! Hello Summer!
The town we were in is called Borðeyri and it is a small hamlet in north-west Iceland. The hamlet is a part of the municipality Bæjarhreppur which is one of the smallest in Iceland with a population of 100 in 2010. The municipality covers the west part of Hrútafjörður fjord. Look at me doing some google research!
We left the guesthouse and headed up to the grandparents house for breakfast.
What a spread they had laid out for us! It was delicious!
During breakfast, Kristin and Einar convinced me to let them call their doctor about 45 kilometers away to get my knee checked out. Einar called the office and spoke directly to the doctor who said if my knee was still swollen there was very little they could do, except recommend ice, elevation and ibuprofen. Einar gave me his prescription strength ibuprofen (600 mg) that he had for his shoulder and the doctor's recommendation to take two pills twice a day....then Einar added "But for you, maybe three times a day!" Those pills have saved my life. Knocked out so much pain.
After breakfast and the medical consultation, we spent some time on their patio which Einar built himself. He pointed out some interesting birds and we soaked up the sun! We got hot for the first time in Iceland. I think it was getting into the 50s! After we visited for a while, we went to an old building next to the Inn where the town was holding a thrift store type market to raise money to restore the building. There were handmade wool items for a very reasonable price and I bought myself a scarf and a pair of Icelandic socks for my niece, The Queen, who desperately wants to visit Iceland. The town is so small that Esra's grandma had the key to let us into the building and when we decided to make a purchase she called the lady with the credit card machine and she came down to help us!
Next came my most favorite part of the trip! Kristin is the assistant to the pastor at their church and she took us five minutes down the road to see it. She is so very proud of this little church!
CAN YOU EVEN STAND IT? Look at it!
This is an organ the church raised money to purchase. In fact, for Kristin's 70th birthday party she asked for donations for the organ. It was handmade by an Icelandic organ player. It was gorgeous.
Kristin even rang the church bells for us when we left. It was an absolute pleasure and honor to get to spend some time with her here and listen to her stories of the paintings and the ceremonies they hold in the church.
This is the pastor's house which is right next to the church. Kristin and Einar lived her for a few years before they moved into their new home.
This is a view from the staircase of the pastor's home. I just can't. I could have stared at this view all day long.
These pictures above are of the local cemetery - also on the grounds of the church. They take great pride in caring for the upkeep of the cemetery. It felt like such a privilege to spend time with Esra's grandparents and get such a personal tour of their town and church. Einar said I could come back in winter to see the Northern Lights and stay in their guest room as long as liked. Sign me up!
It was here that we said goodbye to Kristin and headed back to the city. I am now Facebook friends with her and we are already exchanging messages. Just delightful!
We took an alternate route back to the city that took us on a gravel road for at least an hour - we only passed like four cars! The scenery was magnificent. It got the point that we were not even pointing out waterfalls anymore. They were everywhere and gorgeous. We also stopped to make friends with some of the local animals.
How adorable is he?
We got back to the city with just enough time to change and head over to Esra's Dad's house for dinner. Arnie grilled lamb chops for us along with baked potatoes and salad. It was a glorious summer day in Iceland and we ate on the patio. They did have to turn on the heat lamps as the evening progressed, but just to cut the chill.
We had lots of laughs and I was feeling no pain with Einar's pills and my never ending glass of wine! It was a full and beautiful day in Iceland and we fell into bed tired and happy!
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